No. 6 1992-93 Sonics vs. No. 11 1974-75 Sonics
6 seed: 1992-93
A young Kemp and Payton took the Charles Barkley Phoenix Suns to seven games in the Western Conference Finals.
Regular season record: 55-27
Playoff result: Lost Western Conference Finals
Key players:
Ricky Pierce – The shooting guard averaged a team-high 18.2 points with 2.9 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game
Kemp – The 23-year-old Kemp made his first All-Star game this season as he averaged 17.8 points, 10.7 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.9 blocks per game. In the playoffs, he averaged a double-double with 1.5 steals and two blocks per game.
Payton – At 24 years old, Payton hadn’t yet hit stardom and was a year away from his first All-Star appearance. He averaged 13.5 points, 4.9 assists and 3.4 rebounds while increasing his field goal percentage to 49.4% and getting 2.2 steals per game.
Eddie Johnson – One of the best career sixth-men in league history, Johnson put up 14.4 points in just 22.8 minutes per game for the Sonics.
Derrick McKey – In his final year with the Sonics, McKey averaged 13.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game.
Perkins – A midseason trade to the Sonics from the Los Angeles Lakers, Perkins was instrumental in the playoff run, averaging 14.4 points, 7.0 boards and 1.9 assists while averaging a steal and a block apiece. He scored at least 20 points in four playoff games and had double-digits in six of seven games against Phoenix.
Nate McMillan – McMillan averaged 7.5 points, 5.3 assists and 2.4 steals in 27.1 minutes per game. He started 25 games.
Michael Cage – The center, who started 66 games, posted six points and eight rebounds per game.
11 seed: 1974-75
Regular season record: 43-39
Playoff result: Lost Western Conference Semifinals
For the first time in the eight-year history of the professional Seattle basketball organization, the SuperSonics got to the playoffs.
Key players:
Spencer Haywood — After winning Rookie of the Year, All-Star MVP and regular season MVP of the ABA in 1969-70, Haywood joined the SuperSonics in the NBA. By 74-75 he earned his fourth straight All-Star nod with 22.4 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game.
Fred Brown — Brown averaged 21 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists, and 2.3 steals, while shooting 48 from the field this season.
Archie Clark — Clark’s All-Star days were behind him, but he was still productive in his penultimate season. The guard averaged 13.9 points and 5.6 assists with 3.1 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game while shooting 49.5% from the field.
Leonard Gray — The rookie power forward averaged 11.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game.
Tom Burleson — Burleson, a rookie center, posted 10.1 points and 7.0 rebounds per game.
Slick Watts — The second-year point guard posted 6.1 assist in 25 minutes per game.
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